Frozen Film Shoot 17-19 Jan 2014 Cleveland Ohio

Frozen Film Shoot 17-19 Jan 2014
Getting out for a weekend in the January cold weather; facing the ice, snow, wind to capture winter images is a great time to produce amazing images. So we are doing things a little different for the 2014 Frozen Film Shoot. Instead of the photo hikes into great natural areas, we thought we would take on Cleveland in January.

Sue and I are heading up to Cleveland in January to look for over winter birds and do some photography. We have several stops planned along the lake and Cuyahoga River. A comprehensive list will follow. So not only will we be seeing iced over nautical locations like light houses, docks, the old Coast Guard station, but frozen rusting old iron and steel in the flats as well.

We are collecting a list of warm up spots like the Botanical Gardens and such to get inside and thaw out, before venturing out again. I will contact them and see how tripod friendly they are. (A separate camera is advisable for warm indoor shots and one for cold outdoor shots, too much condensation and temperature shifts keep one from getting any photos)

We will arrive Friday the 17th of Jan and depart on Sunday the 19th. Breakfast is included with your stay in this hotel, and there is ample room in the lobby, eating area to sit and share prints and Jaw-Awhile after dinner out on the town.

We got a surprise the other day. Looking out our den window, there was a woodpecker beating away at a near by tree. Suddenly a Pileated Woodpecker swooped in. We were not sure it was that until we realized it was so big the tree was leaning over.

John & Dolly

"If you want to be famous, you must do something more badly than anybody in the entire world." Miroslav Tichı

January?... We get hit with snow especially hard in February, lol. Hmm, Westlake is next to me - I may attend. Since you will be staying in the Westlake area, you may consider some west-side sites.

Huntington Beach is in Bay Village (very close to Westlake). Not as "interesting" as Cleveland beaches, but perhaps more suburban and picturesque. Lake Erie is also cleaner the further you are from Cleveland proper.

The Rocky River Reservation in Cuyahoga County may also be interesting. Not as large as the Cuyahoga, but closer to Westlake. You can drive the parkway from Lakewood to North Royalton (and further, though it stops being a parkway at one point).

Westlake borders Lorain County, where some good "picturesque" parks can be found in Elyria, probably 20-30 minutes away (though areas of Lorain County do get more rural and pretty, you would be traveling even further away). They have the Black River with a number of parks, but no connecting parkway. The more interesting areas in those parks require some walking off the beaten-path (or should I say, official path), so it might not be easy if there is snow.

The Flats are interesting all year. If the lake is not frozen there may be freighters coming in and out of the Cuyahoga River. Do go there with a friend though. It is not a good place to be alone with expensive gear hanging out.

"John, those Pileated monsters are beautiful!!!" I had never seen one before. HUGE.

John Powers

"If you want to be famous, you must do something more badly than anybody in the entire world." Miroslav Tichı

The Flats are interesting all year. If the lake is not frozen there may be freighters coming in and out of the Cuyahoga River. Do go there with a friend though. It is not a good place to be alone with expensive gear hanging out.

"John, those Pileated monsters are beautiful!!!" I had never seen one before. HUGE.

John Powers

The Flats are not a good place to be in general, lol. Definitely have more than one person with you. Certain areas are okay, but others can be quite rough (as in gangs chasing cars with baseball bats, shootings, etc. - all near the power house).

However, it is very scenic. Try going to Sokolowski's University Inn, great food, and from the parking area you can look down on a section of the flats next to the river. Huge piles of gravel, some ships. Very nice. Sokolowski's is safe, though the area is "iffy," so be careful; but it's not terrible.

Truzi,
Sockolowski's looks amazing. Nice placement too and every bit of advice about being on yuor guard in the area is important. I found they had a web site too: http://www.sokolowskis.com/index.php
I'm excited you have some first hand knoweledge of the area and that input is helpful. Sue is drawing up some of the areas on her list and we will compile them.

John and Shawn, a Pileated is a sight to see. Looks like they could lift a cat off the ground and fly off it it. Then again, before I met Sue all I knew about Pileated wood peckers or other birds can be summed up at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeldv48RGv8